Cloud Computing Fundamentals Quiz

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Questions and Answers

What is cloud computing primarily characterized by?

Delivery of hardware only

Shared access to configurable system resources (correct)

Exclusive access to local resources

High management effort for provisioning

Which of the following is NOT an aspect covered in the course contents related to cloud computing?

Cloud Distributed Storage

Data Center Networking

MapReduce in Heterogeneous Environments

User Interface Design (correct)

What does the term 'Delivery models and services' in cloud computing refer to?

Types of hardware used in data centers

Various methods of providing cloud services (correct)

Standardization of ethical issues

Different ways data is stored locally

Which phrase best summarizes early models of cloud computing?

Public utility-like resource sharing for efficiency Signup and view all the answers

Which ethical issue might be considered in cloud computing?

Security of shared resources Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary billing method most cloud providers use for their services?

Pay-per-usage Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT a deployment model of cloud computing?

Local cloud Signup and view all the answers

Which early computing model was primarily aimed at scientific computing?

Grid computing Signup and view all the answers

Which attribute describes the ability of cloud resources to adjust dynamically to meet demand?

Elasticity Signup and view all the answers

What is the collection of computer resources from multiple locations to achieve a common goal in cloud computing?

Grid computing Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is an example of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)?

Amazon EC2 Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes utility computing?

A pay-per-usage model similar to electricity or gas Signup and view all the answers

What is a characteristic of resource virtualization in cloud computing?

Users access shared resources over the Internet Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary characteristic of utility computing?

Users pay only for the specific usage of resources. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes 'elastic computing'?

Dynamically and on-demand acquiring computing resources. Signup and view all the answers

How does cloud computing improve cost-effectiveness for users?

By enabling resource multiplexing and sharing. Signup and view all the answers

What is one advantage of having data stored in the cloud?

It increases reliability and reduces communication costs. Signup and view all the answers

Which statement about cloud resource management is true?

Service providers may operate more efficiently due to centralization. Signup and view all the answers

What is a major benefit of data sharing in cloud computing?

It allows collaborative activities among global teams. Signup and view all the answers

How does cloud computing address initial investment costs?

By eliminating the need for a private infrastructure. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of cloud computing?

Limitations on resource availability. Signup and view all the answers

What is primarily controlled by the user in the Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) model?

Operating systems Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT a service typically offered by the IaaS model?

Workflow management Signup and view all the answers

In which scenario might Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) be deemed not particularly useful?

When the application must be portable Signup and view all the answers

Which statement accurately describes Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)?

Applications are managed by the service provider. Signup and view all the answers

What type of applications can be deployed using Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS)?

Applications created or acquired by users using supported tools Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best illustrates an example of IaaS?

Amazon EC2 Signup and view all the answers

What is a main concern for sensitive applications, such as in healthcare, in the cloud?

Security and confidentiality Signup and view all the answers

Which option best defines the control a user has over the underlying cloud infrastructure in IaaS?

Control over operating systems and storage only Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is not a suitable characteristic for cloud computing?

Real-time application compatibility Signup and view all the answers

What is included in cloud service management and provisioning?

Virtualization Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is a primary concern regarding cloud computing ethics?

Unauthorized access to data Signup and view all the answers

What does the term 'de-perimeterisation' refer to in the context of cloud computing?

Multiple organizations sharing networks Signup and view all the answers

Which activity does not fall under security management in cloud services?

Virtualization of resources Signup and view all the answers

How do privacy issues influence the adoption of cloud computing?

They determine acceptance based on data handling. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following constitutes a serious risk within cloud computing?

Infrastructure failure and service unavailability Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following activities is part of customer services in cloud computing?

Providing online assistance Signup and view all the answers

What is a key characteristic of parallel computing?

Large problems can be divided into smaller problems to be solved simultaneously. Signup and view all the answers

What does Amdahl's Law primarily address?

The speedup achievable through parallelization. Signup and view all the answers

Which event highlighted vulnerabilities in cloud computing?

Lightning-induced downtime at Amazon. Signup and view all the answers

How do distributed systems differ from traditional computing?

They are made up of a collection of autonomous computers. Signup and view all the answers

What does the speedup S in parallel computing represent?

The ratio of parallel computation to singular computation time. Signup and view all the answers

What cultural factors influence attitudes toward privacy?

Some cultures favor privacy while others emphasize community. Signup and view all the answers

What is a possible consequence of a denial of service attack on a cloud service?

Access disruption to online services like Google News. Signup and view all the answers

What role does middleware play in distributed systems?

It allows computers to share resources and coordinate activities. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Cloud Computing Introduction

Cloud computing is an information technology (IT) paradigm enabling ubiquitous access to shared pools of configurable system resources and higher-level services.
Cloud computing relies on sharing resources to achieve coherence and economies of scale, similar to a public utility.
Cloud computing is essentially the delivery of computing services over the internet.
Cloud providers are companies offering computing services, often billed by usage, similar to gas or electricity.

Course Logistics

Required textbook: "Cloud Computing, Theory and Practice" by Dan Marinescu and Morgan Kaufmann.

Course Contents

Introduction to cloud computing
Virtualization I
Virtualization II
MapReduce batch processing
MapReduce in heterogeneous environments
Large-scale resource management
Data center networking
Cloud distributed storage
Real-time data stream processing

Lecture Contents

What is cloud computing?
Early models of cloud computing
Delivery models and services
Ethical issues in cloud computing
Cloud vulnerabilities
Parallel computing
Distributed systems

What is Cloud Computing?

Cloud computing is an information technology paradigm enabling ubiquitous access to shared configurable system resources and higher-level services.
Services are delivered over the internet and provisioning typically involves minimal management effort.
Cloud computing is often compared to a public utility, using shared resources to achieve economies of scale and coherence.

Cloud Computing Models, Resources, Attributes

Delivery Models: SaaS, PaaS, IaaS
Deployment Models: Public cloud, Private cloud, Community cloud, Hybrid cloud
Resources: Compute and storage servers, networks, services, applications
Defining Attributes: Massive infrastructure, utility computing (pay-per-usage), accessible via internet, elasticity

Early Models of Cloud Computing

Grid computing: Initiated by national labs in the early 1990s, primarily targeted at scientific computing, involves collecting computer resources to reach a common goal.
Utility computing: Initiated in 2005-2006 by IT companies, is a service provisioning model where providers make resources available to customers as needed, charging for specific usage.

Cloud Computing Characteristics

Cloud computing offers on-demand, scalable, and elastic computing (and storage) services.
Cloud resources are metered, with users only charged for the services used.
Shared resources are used for cost-effective resource multiplexing.
Elastic computing allows for dynamic resource acquisition depending on workload demand.

Cloud Computing (cont'd)

Data storage in the cloud is often location-independent, potentially increasing reliability and security while lowering communication costs.
Service providers typically manage maintenance and security.
Specialization and centralization benefit provider efficiency.

Cloud Computing Advantages

Shared resources (CPU cycles, storage, network bandwidth).
Multiplexing of resources leads to higher utilization, especially when peak demands are not synchronized.
Resources are aggregated to support data-intensive applications.
Data sharing facilitates collaborative activities (especially in geographically dispersed teams).
Eliminates initial investment costs for private infrastructure, maintenance, and operation.
Cost reduction is achieved by pay-as-you-go computing.
Elasticity enables workload accommodation with fluctuating peak-to-average ratios.
User convenience through familiar virtualization environments.

Types of Clouds

Public cloud: Infrastructure made available to the public or a large industry group, owned by the cloud service provider.
Private cloud: Infrastructure operated solely for an organization.
Hybrid cloud: Composed of two or more clouds (public, private, community) using standardized technology for data and application portability.
Community/Federated cloud: Shared infrastructure for organizations with common concerns.

Why Cloud Computing is Successful

Cloud computing exploits advances in software, networking, storage, and processor technologies by companies providing cloud services.
Economic benefits for enterprise computing, industrial organizations, financial institutions, and government.
Effective management of infrastructure, with a homogeneous hardware and software resource set within a single administrative domain.
Improved security, resource management, fault tolerance, and quality of service compared to heterogeneous environments.

Challenges for Cloud Computing

Availability of service (what happens when the service provider fails to deliver?).
Data confidentiality, auditability, and the security implications of cloud storage.
Limited user mobility due to service diversity; customers locked into specific providers.
Data transfer bottlenecks in applications requiring intensive data transfer.

More Challenges

Performance unpredictability, especially concerning resource sharing.
Resource management complexity in large data centers, including self-organization and self-management solutions.
Security and confidentiality concerns, especially for sensitive data like healthcare applications.
Ongoing effort required to address these cloud computing challenges

Cloud Delivery Models

Software as a Service (SaaS): High-level service; applications are supplied by the service provider.
Platform as a Service (PaaS): Applications are deployed using programming languages and tools provided by the vendor.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): Low-level service; users deploy and run arbitrary software on the provider's infrastructure.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

User deploys and runs software on provider's resources (CPU, VMs, storage).
User has control over deployed applications, potentially limited network control (eg., host firewalls).
Services include server hosting, storage, computing hardware, operating systems, virtual instances, load balancing, internet access, bandwidth.

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

Cloud users deploy consumer-created, or acquired applications using vendors' supported programming languages and tools.
User manages apps and their configurations, but not the underlying infrastructure (network, servers, operating systems, or storage).
Not suitable for portable app deployments, or those using specific languages/hardware customizations for performance improvement.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Applications are provided by the service provider.
Users don't manage underlying cloud infrastructure or individual application capabilities.
Services include (e.g., workflow management, communications, CRM, desktop software, financial management, geo-spatial and search).
Not suitable for real-time applications or applications where external hosting of data is not allowed.

Cloud Service Models

Packaged Software: Users manage applications, data, runtime, middleware, and operating systems.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): Users manage applications, data, runtime, middleware, and operating systems.
Platform as a Service (PaaS): Vendor manages the infrastructure; Users manage applications, data, runtime, and middleware.
Software as a Service (SaaS): Vendor manages everything; Users only interact with applications

Cloud Activities

Service management and provisioning (including virtualization, service provisioning, call centers, operations management, systems management, QoS management, billing, accounting, asset management, SLA management, technical support, and backups).
Security management (including ID and authentication, certification and accreditation, intrusion prevention, intrusion detection, virus protection, cryptography, physical security, incident response, access control, audit trails, firewalls).
Customer services (e.g., assistance, subscriptions, business intelligence, reporting, customer preferences, personalization).
Integration services (e.g., data management, development).

Ethical Issues

Paradigm shift impacting computing ethics due to control relinquishment to third-party services.
Data storage across multiple sites managed by different organizations.
Multiple services interoperate across the network.
Unauthorised access, data corruption, and infrastructure/service failure are concerns.

De-perimeterisation

Systems cross organizational boundaries.
Determining responsibility in case of undesirable events is complex.
Identity fraud and theft possibilities due to unauthorized access and dissemination of data through social networks.

Privacy Issues

Cloud service providers collect vast amounts of sensitive data worldwide.
Acceptance of cloud computing depends on privacy issues addressed by providers and located countries.
Cultural differences impact privacy attitudes in a global system.

Cloud Vulnerabilities

Clouds are vulnerable to malicious attacks and infrastructure failures, such as power outages.
Attacks on Internet domain name servers can affect access to cloud services.
Significant events like outages at Akamai, Google News/Gmail, and Amazon have occurred.

Parallel Computing

Parallel computing involves executing many calculations simultaneously, dividing large problems into smaller ones.
This aims to solve problems requiring resources not available on a single system and reduce solution time.

Parallel Computing (Amdahl's Law)

Speedup (S) measures parallel efficiency.
Amdahl's law provides an upper theoretical bound on the best achievable speedup achievable by a program when parallelized, focusing on segments that cannot be parallelized.

Distributed Systems

A collection of autonomous computers connected by a network, facilitated by middleware, which coordinate activities and share system resources.
Systems are integrated for the user, even with autonomous components and multiple control/failure points.
Scalability and maintenance of availability are crucial aspects in distributed systems.

Summary

What is cloud computing?
Early models of cloud computing.
Delivery models and services.
Ethical issues in cloud computing.
Cloud vulnerabilities.
Parallel computing and distributed systems (brief).

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Description

Test your knowledge of cloud computing concepts and models with this quiz. Questions cover topics such as delivery models, ethical issues, and resource virtualization. Ideal for anyone looking to reinforce their understanding of cloud computing.